Saturday, November 20
10:00 AM
University of Houston
vs
University of Houston
Photo by: For Houston Athletics
Houston Earns Fifth Consecutive Phill Hansel Invitational Victory
11/20/2021 7:25:00 PM | Swimming & Diving
Cougars find success in the pool and on the boards throughout three day meet
HOUSTON – Houston Swimming & Diving came out on top earning its fifth consecutive Phill Hansel Invitational victory with a combined three-day score of 1,463.00 on Saturday at the CRWC Natatorium.
"We had a great team win this weekend. Had a few swims that we would like to have back, but overall great team performance in the pool and on the boards," stated Head Coach Tanica Jamison. "We had numerous swims this weekend that placed our athletes on the Top 10 list and the girls should be very proud of that!"
Out of 10 total teams between both swimming and diving events, Houston earned the most points and a four-point lead over the second-place overall finisher.
Marina Ortega found day two success with an NCAA B cut in the 400 IM with day three bringing teammate Julia Koluch .07 seconds away from her own NCAA B cut in the 200 Backstroke. Her time of 1:57.18 set her in third place overall and in the school record books with the fifth fastest time.
Houston also performed very well on the boards throughout all rounds of competition including platform diving on Saturday.
"The divers were fantastic this weekend! I'm so proud of everyone," stated Diving Coach Bob Gunter. "I believe that almost everyone had at least one personal best score and a few had personal best scores in all three events! This performance makes the upcoming championship season very exciting and promising."
Chase Farris showed another impressive performance in platform diving scoring 269.00 after five final round dives. The junior also found herself at the top of the leaderboard placing second in both the one-meter and three-meter dives on Thursday and Friday.
Every Cougar competing in the diving events met their zone scores in the one-meter competition on day one. Day two resulted in five out of six divers hitting their zone scores in the three-meter while four of five hit on the platforms.
With the conclusion of the Phill Hansel Invitational, Houston Swimming & Diving wraps up its fall schedule and will begin competition again in January.
"We are looking forward to building from this meet as we now shift our focus toward our championship season," expressed Jamison. "Thank you to all of the friends, family, and special thank you to our alumni that came back this weekend to cheer on their Cougars!"
In addition to the weekend's events, Houston Swimming & Diving collected donations for Star of Hope Mission. Suggested donations included, but were not limited to, stationary, jackets and coats, and toiletries.
"I want to personally thank everyone who donated at the meet to the Star of Hope," said Jamison. "We look forward to bringing all that we collected soon. If you were unable to attend the meet and want to give, you can donate online."
If interested in donating online, please click here.
ABOUT PHILL HANSEL
From 1975-1996, Hansel was the most influential man for the Houston's swimming & diving team. He guided the Cougars to more than 70 dual-meet victories and 10 Top-20 finishes at the AIAW and NCAA Championships.
In 1996, Hansel finished the season with over 39 years of coaching experience and was recognized as one of the most successful collegiate swim coaches in the nation. He was inducted into the Hall of Honor in 2008 with an annual swimming & diving meet created in his name beginning in 2016.
STAY CONNECTED
Follow Houston Swimming & Diving on Twitter and Instagram at @UHCougarSwim, and "Like" Houston Cougar Swimming & Diving on Facebook.
FOLLOW THE COUGARS!
Fans can keep up with the latest in University of Houston Cougar athletics by following us on Facebook (Facebook.com/HoustonAthletics), Twitter (@UHCougars), Instagram (houstoncougars) and YouTube.com (Youtube.com/UHAthletics).
"We had a great team win this weekend. Had a few swims that we would like to have back, but overall great team performance in the pool and on the boards," stated Head Coach Tanica Jamison. "We had numerous swims this weekend that placed our athletes on the Top 10 list and the girls should be very proud of that!"
Out of 10 total teams between both swimming and diving events, Houston earned the most points and a four-point lead over the second-place overall finisher.
Marina Ortega found day two success with an NCAA B cut in the 400 IM with day three bringing teammate Julia Koluch .07 seconds away from her own NCAA B cut in the 200 Backstroke. Her time of 1:57.18 set her in third place overall and in the school record books with the fifth fastest time.
Houston also performed very well on the boards throughout all rounds of competition including platform diving on Saturday.
"The divers were fantastic this weekend! I'm so proud of everyone," stated Diving Coach Bob Gunter. "I believe that almost everyone had at least one personal best score and a few had personal best scores in all three events! This performance makes the upcoming championship season very exciting and promising."
Chase Farris showed another impressive performance in platform diving scoring 269.00 after five final round dives. The junior also found herself at the top of the leaderboard placing second in both the one-meter and three-meter dives on Thursday and Friday.
Every Cougar competing in the diving events met their zone scores in the one-meter competition on day one. Day two resulted in five out of six divers hitting their zone scores in the three-meter while four of five hit on the platforms.
With the conclusion of the Phill Hansel Invitational, Houston Swimming & Diving wraps up its fall schedule and will begin competition again in January.
"We are looking forward to building from this meet as we now shift our focus toward our championship season," expressed Jamison. "Thank you to all of the friends, family, and special thank you to our alumni that came back this weekend to cheer on their Cougars!"
In addition to the weekend's events, Houston Swimming & Diving collected donations for Star of Hope Mission. Suggested donations included, but were not limited to, stationary, jackets and coats, and toiletries.
"I want to personally thank everyone who donated at the meet to the Star of Hope," said Jamison. "We look forward to bringing all that we collected soon. If you were unable to attend the meet and want to give, you can donate online."
If interested in donating online, please click here.
ABOUT PHILL HANSEL
From 1975-1996, Hansel was the most influential man for the Houston's swimming & diving team. He guided the Cougars to more than 70 dual-meet victories and 10 Top-20 finishes at the AIAW and NCAA Championships.
In 1996, Hansel finished the season with over 39 years of coaching experience and was recognized as one of the most successful collegiate swim coaches in the nation. He was inducted into the Hall of Honor in 2008 with an annual swimming & diving meet created in his name beginning in 2016.
STAY CONNECTED
Follow Houston Swimming & Diving on Twitter and Instagram at @UHCougarSwim, and "Like" Houston Cougar Swimming & Diving on Facebook.
FOLLOW THE COUGARS!
Fans can keep up with the latest in University of Houston Cougar athletics by following us on Facebook (Facebook.com/HoustonAthletics), Twitter (@UHCougars), Instagram (houstoncougars) and YouTube.com (Youtube.com/UHAthletics).
Players Mentioned
/ Swimming & Diving
/ Swimming & Diving
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